by Kevin Allen, USA TODAY Sports

by Kevin Allen, USA TODAY Sports

General manager Darcy Regier's decision to fire coach Lindy Ruff undoubtedly will help both the Buffalo Sabres and a team to be named later.

Sabres players needed a new boss, a fresh voice, a change in routine. There is nothing wrong with Ruff's tactics, work ethic or bench decisions. After 16 years with Buffalo, Ruff was simply beyond his freshness date. His message had grown stale, and players were no longer nourished by it.

That doesn't mean players wanted him fired. There is a major difference between a coach losing the team and players growing weary of listening to what a coach has to say.

Every parent understands there comes a point when your children, even if they love you, will look right through you when you lecture them for the 100th time on the same subject. Your children know all of your points before you make them.

And so it was with Buffalo players and Ruff, who was the longest-tenured NHL coach with the same team before he was fired Wednesday. When Ruff was hired July 21, 1997, current Buffalo rookie Mikhail Grigorenko was 3.

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, hired in 1996, is the only active coach in the four major sports with a longer run than Ruff.

Ruff is a tough-love coach, and players have long thought he could be too hard on them. Ruff acknowledged that and changed his style a bit this season, and Regier said communication with players was never better.

But it didn't change the fact that they had heard all of his stories and knew all of his methods. It was like the team was waiting for something to happen. The team needed another layer of inspiration, and Ruff had used up all of his tricks. The magic between coach and players was gone.

Whose fault is it the Sabres are sitting at 6-10-1 after winning their first two games?

There is no right answer. There is only a long list of contributing factors. Tyler Myers hasn't developed like the Sabres hoped he would. The line of Marcus Foligno, Tyler Ennis and Drew Stafford hasn't played as well as it did last season. The defensive play has been inconsistent. The team's depth of talent doesn't seem strong enough. Certainly, there have been some ill-advised contracts.

It's impossible to know for sure why the team is struggling, but Ruff is being replaced on an interim basis by Rochester (N.Y.) Amerks coach Ron Rolston from Rochester (N.Y.) of the American Hockey League because that's the generally accepted practice in this situation.

"I think (the team was) making some strides," Regier said. "But in the end, for every two steps forward, it was one step back."

Home fans booed the Sabres when they lost 2-1 to the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday.

"I think last game was a tipping point," Regier said. "It was evident to me we were searching for answers to too many questions."

Regier said he didn't make the decision to fire Ruff until Wednesday while the team was practicing. He will be second-guessed for not moving sooner, the price he will pay for being loyal to a friend and dedicated Sabres employee of 16 years.

Ruff is probably in a more secure situation now than Regier. With Ruff removed, Regier will face scrutiny alone for what happens to the Sabres. If Rolston can't turn the team around or at least make strides, the impression will be that Regier built a team that wasn't talented enough.

Meanwhile, Ruff, if he chooses, will be the hottest candidate in the coaching marketplace.

Everyone in the NHL understands that just because a coach is fired doesn't mean he's not a good coach.

Hard-edged coach Randy Carlyle's message grew stale on the Anaheim Ducks, but now he's the toast of Toronto. Bruce Boudreau was fired because he couldn't get the Washington Capitals moving, but now he is doing a masterful job with Anaheim. Peter DeBoer was fired by the Florida Panthers and then took the New Jersey Devils to the Stanley Cup Final last June.

It's doubtful Ruff feels good about his situation tonight, because his family's life has been turned inside out. But within a short time, he'll realize it's entirely possible he could end up in a better situation. Even Regier conceded Wednesday there were plenty of unknowns about what kind of team the Sabres had. If Ruff hadn't been fired Wednesday, he was going to stay on the hot seat.

Regier predicted Ruff would land fairly quickly in another NHL job.

"I think back when we interviewed (Ruff) and I called Scotty Bowman about him," Regier said. "I said, 'Scotty, who would you compare him to?' And he said, 'Darcy, he's a lot like Al Arbour with a sense of humor,' and I think Scotty was right."